In a wireless communication system, a scheduling algorithm is an essential function. The scheduling signifies the determination of when and how to allocate system resources, such as frequency, time, space, and the like. Usable resources are limited by the characteristics of a wireless network, and further, since more effective utilization of resources is required due to a rapid increase in demand for service capacity, the necessity of efficient scheduling is gradually increasing.
Typically, a wireless communication system is operated in a determined frequency band. For example, in the case of systems in the 802.11 family, including an 802.1 lad system, multiple users may simultaneously exist in a network. In this case, due to limited resources, the greater the number of users, the lower a data rate by which each user can be serviced. Particularly, a system, that accesses a wireless channel on the basis of contention as in the systems in the 802.11 family, has a noticeable reduction phenomenon of a data rate. Accordingly, a scheduling technique which enables the avoidance of contention and can increase the efficiency of resources is required.
For effective scheduling, it is important to recognize the distribution of users in a network and an interference relation between links of the users, namely, a network topology. This is because when the network topology is capable of being accurately determined, efficient scheduling such as the maximization of spatial reuse and the like can be performed.